Western University to host IACAC admission counsellors’ conference

Western will be hosting the International Association for College Admission Counseling (IACAC) Conference in 2024, becoming the first university to host the annual conference twice in the three decades since it was first held. The university previously hosted IACAC in 2019.

The conference is a prestigious gathering of university admissions officers, high school guidance counsellors and independent education consultants from around the world. It is a key point for disseminating ideas and insights about university admissions and how students’ academic lives and careers can be shaped.

“We’re excited to welcome about 1,500 guests on campus during the second week of July 2024, including guidance counsellors who attended the conference in 2019 and new delegates,” said Carolyn Ford, director, international undergraduate recruitment at Western.

“We plan to organize more events and showcases, to encourage previous attendees to return to Western. We want members of the association to know Western has much more to offer, over and above what they experienced during the previous conference,” she said.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many guidance counsellors at high schools retired. At the 2022 conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Western representatives noticed a significant increase in the number of new guidance counsellors at high schools.

“These new professionals to the field might not have had a lot of exposure to higher education options in Canada, or particularly at Western. To showcase Western and Canada’s higher education options to the world, we submitted a bid in late 2022 to repeat as host,” said Ford.

IACAC at present has more than 3,500 members from more than 1,500 unique institutions and organizations across 141 countries. The 2023 conference was held at Florida International University, Miami, from July 11 to 14.

As part of its plans for hosting the conference in 2024, Western is collaborating with affiliates, Tourism London and counterparts in the Greater Toronto Area to add exciting events and programming to the conference.

“This is an outstanding opportunity to showcase the best that London has to offer to the international delegates who will be in attendance. By shining a light on our city, and showcasing our tourist attractions, culinary, music and culture, and the warm welcome of Londoners, IACAC will be helping generate economic benefits to our community,” said Karen Dowhan, director of conventions, Tourism London.

“We know we delivered a high-quality conference in 2019 and we are confident we can improve on that track record,” Ford said.